Civic Holiday Co-Parenting Schedules

The first Monday in August is known to many as Civic Holiday. However, only Nunavut and the Northwest Territories use that name for the holiday.

Other provinces have different official names for the holiday:

• British Columbia Day (British Columbia)
• Saskatchewan Day (Saskatchewan)
• New Brunswick Day (New Brunswick)
• Heritage Day (Alberta)
• Natal Day (Nova Scotia)
• Terry-Fox Day (Manitoba)

In Ontario, the name varies by region.

• Simcoe Day (Toronto)
• John Galt Day (Guelph)
• Colonel by Day (Ottawa)

No holiday is observed on the day in Québec, Yukon, or parts of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Banks and government offices are usually closed on Civic Holiday.

With a new school year drawing near and many parents free from work, Civic Holiday is a great time to spend with family. Think about how you can fit the holiday into your co-parenting schedule.

Allow one parent to have the whole day

The children can spend the holiday with one parent. Consider using this as an opportunity to give the co-parent who has less parenting time more time with the kids.

Give one parent vacation time with the kids

Many parents include vacation time in their co-parenting schedules. A simple way to schedule vacations is to align them with holidays.

You can allow one parent to have a short vacation from Friday to the end of the Civic Holiday on Monday.

Follow your regular schedule

You could follow your schedule as you normally would. Allow the parent who has the day in the regular co-parenting schedule to have the holiday.

If you would ordinarily have a transition that Monday, you can leave it as is or adjust the time to account for holiday activities.

Split the day

Even if you don't normally have a transition on Monday, you can give each parent time on the holiday. Add in a visit for the parent who wouldn't ordinarily see the children that day.

The easiest way to make a holiday visitation schedule

There's a lot to think about when you build a holiday schedule. You'll want it to address weekend and midweek holidays, reflect special occasions unique to your family (like birthdays) and work for years to come.

The Custody X Change app makes it easy. Just open your Custody X Change calendar and follow our steps to make a holiday schedule.

To make a custody schedule quickly and affordably, turn to Custody X Change. You'll get written and visual versions that meet your family's needs, as well as court standards.